Acer chair and chief executive Jason Chen expects pressure on computer component prices to begin easing in the second half of 2027, challenging suppliers’ warnings that tight memory markets could persist until 2030 or beyond.
Chen told reporters that shortages are now concentrated in a narrower set of products, according to a report summarized by Tom’s Hardware. He identified high-end memory such as LPDDR5X-9600 and specialized processors including Nvidia’s N1 and N1X as areas where supply remains constrained. By contrast, he said general memory and solid-state drive availability is already sufficient.
The distinction matters for PC buyers because suppliers’ component prices reach retail products with a delay. Chen expects computer prices to rise by between 5% and 20% toward the end of 2026, then level off during the first half of 2027. He projected declines later that year as the market absorbs additional production and customers resist further increases.
Memory prices have been pushed higher by demand from artificial-intelligence infrastructure, where large installations consume high-bandwidth memory and other advanced components. Some established manufacturers have argued that the imbalance will last for years as factories take time to plan and construct. Chen offered a more skeptical interpretation, saying producers have a commercial interest in sustaining expectations of scarcity and protecting margins.
He also pointed to Chinese manufacturers as a source of competitive pressure. Acer, HP and Asus have begun using memory made by CXMT in some products, while some Lenovo computers sold in Germany have contained solid-state drives from YMTC, the report said. Lower-cost capacity from those suppliers could make it harder for larger incumbents to keep prices elevated across mainstream product lines.
That does not mean every input cost is falling. Chen said suppliers of solid-state drives, printed circuit boards and fiberglass cloth used in motherboards have also sought price increases. Those overlapping pressures could keep finished computers expensive even if ordinary DRAM becomes easier to source.
The forecast is an industry executive’s assessment rather than a guaranteed price path. Demand for AI hardware, export restrictions, factory schedules and the mix of components used in consumer machines can all affect availability. The evidence supplied for this article does not include independent forecasts from memory producers or market analysts.
For consumers, Chen’s timeline therefore points to continued near-term increases before any relief. For manufacturers, it suggests that sourcing alternatives and weaker buyer tolerance may begin to outweigh scarcity narratives once more capacity reaches the market.
